What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said?

RED LETTER REVOLUTION:

WHAT IF JESUS REALLY MEANT WHAT HE SAID?

Outline & Study Guide

Introduction through Chapter 3

I.  Introduction: Why This Book?

A.  Tony Campolo introduces a group of Christians (“Red Letter Christians”) who are “theologically evangelical” but not “anti-gay, anti-feminist, anti-environmentalist, pro-war, pro-capital punishment, and conservative Republican” (p. xi).

Question: If you had to label your theology, what descriptor(s) would you choose?

B.  Campolo (a septuagenarian) introduces his dialogue partner, Shane Claiborne (a Gen Xer); Campolo explains that while he and Claiborne agree on the importance of the Bible’s red letters (the words of Jesus, which are in red in some Bibles), they live them out differently—Campolo through political action (he even ran for Congress) and Claiborne through “more direct ways of implementing the justice requisites of Jesus” (communal living, for example).

Question: What are the respective strengths/weaknesses of these different approaches?

II.  Chapter 1: On History

A.  Campolo claims the new term Red Letter Christian was needed because fundamentalist and evangelical carry “baggage” (pp. 4-5).

Question: When you hear/read the term fundamentalist or the term evangelical, what comes to mind?

B.  Campolo explains their hermeneutical (interpretive) approach: “the red letters [the words of Jesus] are superior to the black letters of the Bible” (he cites Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount as support) (p. 5).

Question: How is the Red Letter hermeneutical approach helpful/unhelpful?

III.  Chapter 2: On Community

A.  Perhaps aware that much of what they write will be difficult for readers to hear, Campolo and Claiborne reject judgment and guilt: “Don’t judge me in terms of what I am, but how far I’ve come in terms of where I hope to go in life” (Campolo); “I’m not a big fan of guilt” (Claiborne) (p. 16).

Question: What should motivate us to take seriously the teachings of Jesus if not guilt or fear of judgment?

B.  As someone who has lived in an intentional community whose members share their possessions, Claiborne writes, “We need to realize that community and radical economics are at the heart of the Christian faith” (p. 20).

Question: What might “radical economics” look like for those of us who are not living communally?

IV.  Chapter 3: On the Church

A.  A sociologist, Campolo observes, “Every sociological study done of late indicates that young adults are becoming more and more spiritual but less and less religious, that institutionalized religion is a turnoff for them” (p. 21).

Question: Why do you think young adults are less and less interested in church?

B.  Claiborne writes, “[Christians] have not been honest. We’ve pretended to be perfect and pointed fingers at other people. So then when we get caught doing the same things we have called others out on, we are doubly guilty. There really is something to this idea of ‘Judge not, that you not be judged’” (Matthew 7:1 NKJV) (p. 27).

Question: In addition to hypocrisy, what else keeps people away from churches?